Log-on Time Research Articles

Therapeutic components of an automated digital counselling intervention for chronic heart failure

Abstract Background/Introduction Task force statements advocate digital health interventions to promote self-care behaviour and health-related quality of life (HRQL) in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). There is a need to identify therapeutic components of digital interventions to improve the efficacy and replicability of these CHF interventions. Purpose The Canadian e-Platform to PrOmote BehavioRal Self-ManagemenT in Chronic Heart Failure trial (CHF-CePPORT) evaluated the efficacy of automated digital counseling to improve HRQL at 12 months, using the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire-Overall Summary (KCCQ-OS). Our aim was to identify therapeutic components of the CHF-CePPORT protocol that were independently associated with KCCQ-OS endpoint. Methods CHF-CePPORT was a multicenter, randomized controlled trial with a 2-parallel group, double blind design, and assessments at baseline, 4- and 12-months. This substudy focused on patients randomized to the automated digital counseling arm of CHF-CePPORT. Ordinal logistic regression was used to identify components of the protocol that predicted higher KCCQ-OS tertile at 12-months, according to schedule of automated digital contact, modality of content, and clinical content theme – see Figure. Results From the sample enrolled in CHF-CePPORT (n=230), 117 patients were included in this substudy: female, n=24 (20.5%), median age=60 years (IQR, 52, 69), New York Heart Association Class 1, n=45 (38.5%), Class 2, n=48 (41.0%), and Class 3, n=16 (13.7%). Baseline KCCQ-OS was median=82.3 (IQR, 67, 93). Patient engagement with the digital counseling platform over 12 months was as follows: Median (IQR) total logons = 79 (24, 133), Total logon time = 5.8 hours (1.6, 9.8). Total logon time during the initial phase of the trial (sessions 1–16), with weekly scheduled sessions was independently associated with a higher 12-month KCCQ-OS tertile score (p=0.003). Subsequent sections (sessions 17–24, and 25–28) were not independently associated with the 12-month KCCQ-OS (p=0.56 and p=0.91 respectively). Within sessions 1–16, the 12-month KCCQ-OS was associated with the use of counseling and dramatic videos (p=0.04) and e-tools/trackers (p=0.007), but not conventional information/education pages (p=0.80). Content themes associated with the 12-month KCCQ-OS included motivational counseling (sessions 5–8) with self-assessment tools and trackers (p=0.04). Cognitive behavioural guidelines for HF self-care were also associated with 12-month KCCQ-OS tertiles when presented by expert and dramatic videos (p=0.02) as well as self-assessment etools/etrackers (p=0.02). Self-assessment tools and trackers for HRQL (sessions 15–16) were also associated with higher KCCQ tertiles at 12 months (p=0.01) – see Table. Conclusion(s) The results of this study confirm the importance of using key components from evidence-based, clinically organized protocols of behavioural counseling to promote HRQL for patients with CHF. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: Public grant(s) – National budget only. Main funding source(s): Canadian Institutes of Health Research

Cyber schooling and the accumulation of school time

ABSTRACT Full-time virtual schools problematize what it means to ‘attend’ school. Is it the length of time a child is logged on to the school’s software system (regardless of the amount of work done), or the amount of work submitted (regardless of the log-on time)? How should one figure the amount of work teachers are doing when students work by themselves at home? Using data from documents and from interviews with 22 teachers from 10 full-time virtual schools in the U.S., this article examines schools as economies of institutional time, animated through two circuits of ‘temporal accumulation’: one producing students’ individual academic records, a second tracking the quantity of time schools spend working with students. Cyber schooling reconfigures these circuits and their interlinkages, with implications for school funding, student certification, and teachers’ work.

Characterizing Geosocial-Networking App Use Among Young Black Men Who Have Sex With Men: A Multi-City Cross-Sectional Survey in the Southern United States.

BackgroundUnderstanding where and how young black men who have sex with men (YBMSM) in the southern United States meet their sexual partners is germane to understanding the underlying factors contributing to the ongoing HIV transmission in this community. Men who have sex with men (MSM) commonly use geosocial networking apps to meet sexual partners. However, there is a lack of literature exploring geosocial networking app use in this particular population.ObjectiveOur aim was to examine the characteristics, preferences, and behaviors of a geographically diverse sample of geosocial networking app-using YBMSM in the southern United States.MethodsData were collected from a sample of 75 YBMSM across three cities (Gulfport, Mississippi; Jackson, Mississippi; and New Orleans, Louisiana). Multiple aspects of geosocial networking app use were assessed, including overall app use, age of participant at first app use, specific apps used, reasons for app use, photos presented on apps, logon times and duration, number of messages sent and received, and characteristics of and behaviors with partners met on apps. Survey measures of app-met partner and sexual behavior characteristics assessed at midpoint (Day 7) and completion visits (Day 14) were compared using McNemar’s test or Wilcoxon signed-rank test. In addition, we assessed activity spaces derived from GPS devices that participants wore for 2 weeks.ResultsOf the 70 participants who responded to the overall app-use item, almost three-quarters (53/70, 76%) had ever used geosocial networking apps. Jack’d was the most commonly used geosocial networking app (37/53, 70%), followed by Adam4Adam (22/53, 42%), and Grindr (19/53, 36%). The mean and median number of apps used were 4.3 (SD 2.7) and 4.0 (range 0-13), respectively. Most app-using participants displayed their face on the profile picture (35/52, 67%), whereas fewer displayed their bare legs (2/52, 4%) or bare buttocks (or ass; 2/52, 4%). The mean age at the initiation of app use was 20.1 years (SD 2.78) ranging from 13-26 years. Two-thirds (35/53, 66%) of the sample reported using the apps to “kill time” when bored. A minority (9/53, 17%) reported using the apps to meet people to have sex/hook up with. The vast majority of participants reported meeting black partners for sex. Over two-thirds (36/53, 68%) reported that the HIV status of their app-met partners was negative, and 26% (14/53) reported that they did not know their partner’s HIV status. There was a significant difference in GPS activity spaces between app using YBMSM compared to nonapp using YBMSM (2719.54 km2 vs 1855.68 km2, P=.011).ConclusionsUse of geosocial networking apps to meet sexual partners among our sample of YBMSM in the southern United States was common, with a diverse range of app use behaviors being reported. Further research should characterize the association between geosocial networking app use and engagement in sexual behaviors that increase risk for HIV acquisition and transmission. In addition, geosocial networking apps present a promising platform for HIV prevention interventions targeting YBMSM who use these apps.

Empirical results of an experimental study on the role of password strength and cognitive load on employee productivity

The demand for information system authentication has significantly increased over the last decade. Research has shown that the majority of user authentications remain to be password based, however, it is well documented that passwords have significant limitations. To address this issue, companies have been placing increased requirements on the user to ensure their passwords are more complex and consequently stronger with little consideration on the impact on employee productivity. Thus, this study was set to determine the effects of changing the password strength (cognitive load) over time and its impact on employee productivity. An experiment with two experimental groups and one control group was conducted. Data was collected on the number of failed operating system logon attempts, users’ logon times, task completion times, and number of reset requests. The data collected from 72 participants was analyzed for group differences and when controlling for computer experience, age, and gender. Our results showed significant differences on all measures between the three groups. However, no significant differences were observed when controlling for computer experience, age, and gender. Furthermore, the results indicated a significant difference between the user’s perceptions about passwords before and after the experiment. Our results may help organizations to realize the point at which increasing authentication places a higher cognitive load on the users, which in turn affects their productivity.

Every Cloud Has a Push Data Lining: Incorporating Cloud Services in a Context-Aware Application

We investigated context-awareness by utilising multiple sources of context in a mobile device setting. In our experiment we developed a system consisting of a mobile client, running on the Android platform, integrated with a cloud-based service. These components were integrated using push messaging technology. One of the key features was the automatic adaptation of smartphones in accordance with implicit user needs. The novelty of our approach consists in the use of multiple sources of context input to the system, which included the use of calendar data and web based user configuration tool, as well as that of an external, cloud-based, configuration file storing user interface preferences which, pushed at log-on time irrespective of access device, frees the user from having to manually configure its interface. The system was evaluated via two rounds of user evaluations (n= 50 users), the feedback of which was generally positive and demonstrated the viability of using cloud-based services to provide an enhanced context-aware user experience.

몰입에 영향을 미치는 내적보상과 외적보상

최근 많은 사람들이 온라인 게임을 즐김에 따라 플레이어의 온라인 게임 이용 시간을 늘리기 위해 새로운 형태의 다양한 게임을 시장에 출시하고 있다. 하지만 왜 플레이어가 온라인 게임을 지속적으로 플레이하는지에 대한 연구는 그렇게 많지 않다. 본 연구는 플레이어의 온라인 게임 이용 시간의 주요한 요인이 되는 즐거운 경험의 이유를 분석하고자 한다. 이를 위해 본 연구에서는 몰입의 경험과 고객충성도간의 관계를 기초로 몰입을 증가시키기 위한 내적, 외적 보상의 종류에 대해 분석하였다. 먼저 Personal Interaction을 통해 플레이어가 얻고자 하는 외적 보상은 문제해결에 따른 보상의 형평성이며, 이를 통해 플레이어는 현재 자신이 목표성취를 잘 하고 있다고 느끼는 인지적 성과를 높게 경험하는 것으로 분석되었다. 두 번째, Social Interaction을 통해 플레이어는 타 플레이어로부터 긍정적인 평가를 받기를 원하며, 이를 통해 자아존중감이 높아지는 것으로 분석되었다. 결국 인지적 성과와 자아존중감은 온라인 게임을 통해 플레이어에게 몰입을 경험하게 만드는 주요한 요인이며, 이를 통해 게임을 계속 이용하겠다는 고객 충성도가 높아진다는 것을 알 수 있었다.

The Dark Side of the Laptop University

Earlier discussions of computer labs versus classroom computers, specialist computer teachers versus subject matter instructors have been leapfrogged. The technological juggernaut has overwhelmed us to present the Laptop University. Now the attention of the academic community is firmly fixed on hailing the laptop as the worthy successor to white boards (no more chalk dust on blue suits), the overhead projector, the single concept projector, film, TV and the cafeteria's apple pie in plastic wrap. The technical matters such as short battery life and long logon times will be addressed in the coming years with instant logon, infrared connections, as well as other minor matters, such as the inappropriate electronic sharing of information (cheating).When the students activate their laptops, they are presented with choices: pay attention to the teacher or answer Instant Messenger, check the email on Yahoo, surf the net for music, stare at their favorite movie star's picture, or boyfriend or girlfriend or catch up with the homework from some class. These are matters that need other than technological solutions. We have provided students with a multimedia contraption, a magic lantern and an unspoken challenge: do you have the strength to avoid amusing yourself to death, as Neil Postman put it, and the courage to step around this self destructive aspect of the dark side: recognition and self discipline are needed.Another aspect of the unanticipated is the social detachment of the learner. Unless there is a specific group assignment, the student with a few clicks is exploring the activities on his own. One only has to look into any computer lab or room full of students to see the intensity of attention displayed by the student. The laptop has exacerbated the devotion of the student to the computer to the exclusion of social interaction. Even email, chat rooms, and instant messages are elements that separate the individual from the social sphere. It is in front of the screen that social interaction occurs, sending and receiving short bursts of words. Body language and facial clues are eliminated from the dialogue. Attempts are made to put them back by developing symbols, e.g., ?, which with use become cliches. Students have discarded the art of conversation: the well-turned phrase, the wink, the hand gesture, and the accepting smile. It is this dual sense of isolation and community, tribalism and globalism, that produces the tyranny of the anonymous email writer who with one click addresses a universe.Amusement and social detachment are unlooked for components of the Laptop University, since the computer's raison d'etre is its use as a tool: a communication device, a calculator, a paintbrush, a typewriter, or a library. How these tools are being used and how they a∂ect the mindset of the users constitutes the major area of the reaction side of the Laptop University. Many students are dependent on a calculator, trusting in its authority and reliability to see them through; without the calculator they are often not able to work with fractions or decimals and standard deviations are devilish. …

Why People Continue to Play Online Games: In Search of Critical Design Factors to Increase Customer Loyalty to Online Contents

As people increasingly play online games, numerous new features have been proposed to increase players' log-on time at online gaming sites. However, few studies have investigated why people continue to play certain online games or which design features are most closely related to the amount of time spent by players at particular online gaming sites. This study proposes a theoretical model using the concepts of customer loyalty, flow, personal interaction, and social interaction to explain why people continue to play online network games. The study then conducts a large-scale survey to validate the model. Finally, it analyzes current online games to identify design features that are closely related to the theoretical concepts. The results indicate that people continue to play online games if they have optimal experiences while playing the games. This optimal experience can be attained if the player has effective personal interaction with the system or pleasant social interactions with other people connected to the Internet. Personal interaction can be facilitated by providing appropriate goals, operators and feedback; social interaction can be facilitated through appropriate communication places and tools. This paper ends with the implications of applying the study results to other domains such as e-commerce and cyber communities.

Security aspects of teleradiology between the university centre and outlying hospitals in Tyrol

We assessed a data security system using biometric fingerprint techniques and smartcards to control access to a teleradiology system. Clinical cases were initially discussed between the referring physician and radiologist in Tyrol using a video-phone. Subsequent correspondence, including the transmission of images between the referring physician and the radiologist, was carried out by e-mail using the security system to prevent unauthorized access to patient information. Seventy-eight teleradiology sessions were conducted using this data security system. Speed and stability of data exchange were unaffected by the additional security feature. The average log-on time to the system was 7.8 s. The average training time on how to use the system was 15 min. The radiologist was able to issue a final patient report using the system within 1.5 of the initial contact. The data security feature was user-friendly and did not hinder the normal teleradiology consultation.